“DIY Rope Mirror”

We are always trying to find inspiration in the current trends. I’m always walking through my favorite stores and browsing Pinterest looking for it and they never fail me.

I’ve spotted similar rope mirrors like I’ll be showing you today. The most recent store I saw one in was Joann Fabrics & Crafts. This is one of my favorite and most frequently visited stores. They have a new line of summer items which are be achy and lake themed. Their mirror is $49.99 and you can catch it on sale sometimes.

I’m going to show you how to do all of this on your own for even less! And you can change up the design if you like.

What you will need is:

sisal rope (or whatever you like)

jute twine

a mirror

foam board

plant wire

Quick Grip

Elmer’s Glue

The mirror was purchased at Joann. They sell them without the beveling around the edges and I prefer that. The foam board and adhesive supplies were purchased at Walmart (except the Quick Grip was purchased at Joann Fabrics & Crafts). The plant wire was purchased at Hobby Lobby. The rope was purchased at Home Depot. Everything together was approximately $28.

First, lay your mirror in the center of the foam board and attach the mirror with the Quick Grip.

Next, wrap your rope around your mirror to get an idea of how you want it to look. I wrapped mine 4 times. Once you have it wrapped, draw a line under the edge of the outside rope. You’ll use this as a guide to cut out your shape from your foam board. Once you have it drawn, remove the rope and cut out the excess board with your Xacto knife.

Next, wrap your rope end with masking tape (or brown painters tape). Begin to wrap it around the edge of your mirror. Cut where the ends meet using a hacksaw. **TIP: When cutting with a hacksaw, only pull the blade to you instead of going back and forth. Go with the teeth instead of against them to prevent a fraying mess.** Be careful and watch your hands. Use a glove to grip the rope and protect your hand. For every end, wrap with tape to prevent fraying. My masking tape had dried up and I couldn’t find my painters tape, so I had to use scotch tape. Don’t laugh.

Once you have each piece of rope cut, adhere them to the mirror/board with the Quick Grip. Leave a few inches where the ends meet UNGLUED so we can add in our jute later.

This is how your project should be looking now:

I set a paint can on top to hold the rope in place while it dried. You can also use your tape.

Once your glue has had a little time to dry, you can start wrapping your twine around the ends to cover them up. Adhere the end of your twine underneath the outside edge of the top piece of rope and start wrapping. I started on one side and worked my way in and when I got to the middle, I went to the other side and worked my way in.

When you get to the middle work all the way until you get to the middle then push the outside edges on each side of your twine in, so they all meet together and cover the ends of your rope. Adhere your end piece of your twine to the underside again.

We are almost done!

Measure out your smaller piece of Sisal around the edge of your frame. We want to cover the exposed foam board. Cut your rope. You can also dip your rope ends in Elmer’s glue and let them dry to prevent fraying. It will dry clear. Adhere your Sisal to the outside edges of your frame with Quick Grip.

This is how your finished edge looks (my sunlight went away, so the pic looks a little drab).

Time to attach the hanger. I spread some Quick Grip on the back of it and “screwed” it in. This should allow for extra support while hanging. This mirror isn’t heavy at all, so this should be an effective solution, but it is my first time doing this, so I will check on it the first few days just to be sure there is no shifting. I’m allowing it to cure for 24 hours as it says on the tube before hanging it.